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Book Review : Allegiant by Veronica Roth

I have never felt so conflicted over what to rate a book. Parts I loved, parts I hated and lots that had me scratching me head in total confusion. Which makes me think 3 stars or possibly even lower? But I still have all the feels. So I’m rounding up to 3.5 stars.

One choice will define you. What if your whole world was a lie? What if a single revelation—like a single choice—changed everything? What if love and loyalty made you do things you never expected?

The faction-based society that Tris Prior once believed in is shattered—fractured by violence and power struggles and scarred by loss and betrayal. So when offered a chance to explore the world past the limits she’s known, Tris is ready. Perhaps beyond the fence, she and Tobias will find a simple new life together, free from complicated lies, tangled loyalties, and painful memories.

But Tris’s new reality is even more alarming than the one she left behind. Old discoveries are quickly rendered meaningless. Explosive new truths change the hearts of those she loves. And once again, Tris must battle to comprehend the complexities of human nature—and of herself—while facing impossible choices about courage, allegiance, sacrifice, and love.

First Line in Allegiant:

“I pace in our cell in Erudite headquarters, her words echoing in my mind: My name is Edith Prior, and there is much I am happy to forget.”

My Thoughts on Allegiant:

OK, I’m not going to have a spoiler but the elephant in the room is that ending. I’m not going to say much about it, expect that I loved it! I managed to avoid the spoilers while reading it but knew from my twitter feed that it was controversial. It proved to me that Veronica Roth has some dauntless blood flowing through her veins. Yes I can see why some fans objected but I loved the direction the book took, it felt very in character and added an emotional depth to the book that I for one really appreciated.

Apart from that though, I wasn’t so impressed. The world-building lost me. There was so much going on that I found it hard to untangle it all in my head. In the end, I just admitted I was confused and went with the flow. It did all get easier to put together but if you asked me to explain it all to you now, I know I would fail miserably.

And I hate to admit this but if I didn’t already love Four and Tris from Divergent then I wouldn’t really have had much feeling for their relationship in this book. They had very few meaningful exchanges and I would have loved to see them together a bit more. However this book is a trilogy and I carried forward all my feels so I still loved them together for old times’ sake if nothing else. And there were a couple of scenes that made me believe in them all over again.

“I stay with him because I choose to, every day that I wake up, every day that we fight or lie to each other or disappoint each other. I choose him over and over again, and he chooses me.”

The new characters were a bit hit and miss. As there was so much time spent filling in the history of the factions world, how it combines with the rest of the world, the rebellions (yes plural!), I found there wasn’t enough room for character development of either the older characters or the newer ones. Some of the newer characters like Matthew and Nita did appeal to me and while I didn’t particularly like them, I did find them interesting.

Another aspect I wasn’t sold on was the dual pov; I enjoy dual pov and love the extra perspective that you get. However at times I forgot I was in Four’s head and would get surprised at a mention of Tris. I think the voices were a little bit too similar and that stopped this being as effective as it should have been. Apart from this confusion at times though, I loved being able to switch back and forth between the characters and see what they were truly thinking instead of having to guess.

And now that I have all the negatives out of the way, all I can say is I still really liked this. With all its flaws, Veronica Roth has created a unique world with memorable characters that I will think fondly about forever. If I was brave enough, I’d go for a zip wire ride to celebrate all things Divergent but as I’m far from Dauntless, I’ll just a raise my glass and bid farewell to Tris and Four. Thanks for all the good times and for inspiring me to be braver in my everyday life.

Rating Report

Characters

Setting

Pace

Did I feel it?

Overall:

Why should read Allegiant?

If you have read the first two books, then you need to see how it all finishes up. You may not be happy by the last page though!

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8 Responses to “Book Review : Allegiant by Veronica Roth”

Wow Trish! What a great and profound review! I really got a feel for this book without getting any spoilers. I have been nervous about reading it because all of the mixed controversy over Twitter. I slow down quite a bit at the end of Nov and into Dec so I think I’ll read it then. Can’t wait to see how it ends.Chelsea @ Starbucks & Books Obsession recently posted…Blog Tour Review: The Devil’s Tattoo by Nicole R. Taylor

I tried hard not to spoil it so I’m glad the review still made sense. Overall I still really, really like this series and it remains one of my favourite dystopia series so far. And I heart Four more than ever!

Gah I have to read this but I’m definitely waiting for all the hype to die down. I feel like I will be expecting too much of.. something. I have heard a lot of comments about that ending though that’s making me very curious about it. Isn’t it annoying though to want to talk about t so bad but you have to do it only privately with people who have already read the book. Epic or shocking endings always make me want to blab to everyone haha. I also didn’t know this one was in dual POV. Interesting! Could also be a hit or miss fr me so we’ll see. Anyways, great review! 🙂

I have never seen so much hype for any book! I think the movie is adding to it but some fans were so OTT in their reactions. I loved that ending! Hope you enjoy it when you get to it Giselle, I think all the so-so reviews will probably lower your expectations which might work to your favour.

I can’t wait till I finally get to read this. I’ve been seeing so much buzz about the ending that I’m dying to know what has happened. Of course I’m a bit disappointed that so many people are coming out in the middle for this one. Which I don’t find incredibly surprising because this is a series I know I can never re-read if I want it to stay high on my list of dystopians.Michelle @ In Libris Veritas recently posted…Saturday Issue Review: Morning Glories Vol 1. For A Better Future

I’ve been eyeballing the Divergent series lately. My library has all three of them on audiobook, and I’ve been actually (finally!) getting into listening to them lately. I drive around way too much and wish I could be reading rather than listening to music.

I guess even if you gave this one an iffy rating, you seem to love the series overall? Perhaps I should get Divergent for when I finish my current sci-fi listen. 🙂Leanne @ Literary Excursion recently posted…Sci-Fi November Bingo Challenge

I don’t really do audio books but if I spent a lot of time driving I think I might reconsider this. It would be a great way to pack more books in!
I love Divergent but the other two books are not as strong. Still one of my favourite YA dystopian series so far though, mostly because I love the characters. And I really enjoyed the world building in Divergent but it got a bit shaky after that.

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